The 2026 parliamentary elections in Nepal felt like a real turning point. For many people, it was not only about choosing  new leaders. It was also a sign that voters were tired of the same old politics and wanted a government that could actually get things done. After years of hope followed by disappointment, many were looking for a more practical and honest way forward.

A lot of mood came together in what many called the “Balen wave.” It reflected public frustration with corruption and weak governance, as well as hope for something better. People wanted leaders who would be more open, more responsible, and more serious about results. Balen’s victory over former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli in Jhapa-5 by around 50,000 votes made that message hard to ignore.

At 35, Prime Minister Shah came to represent a younger generation impatient with slow growth, poor delivery, and political excuses. But real change will not come from a single person. It will depend on whether the central, provincial, and local governments can work together to improve the daily lives of ordinary people.

PM Balendra 'Balen' Shah hugs the outgoing interim PM Sushila Karki at the swearing-in ceremony

The election also showed that young people are no longer standing on the sidelines of politics. They are involved, vocal, and ready to push for accountability. Many of them are using technology, media, and public awareness to question leaders and demand better performance.

With the RSP holding a strong majority, Nepal has a rare chance to pass laws more steadily and push reforms without constant political deadlock. Some of the planned reforms include strengthening anti-corruption mechanisms, improving public education through curriculum updates and teacher training, and expanding health insurance coverage to reach more families.

The government also aims to simplify business regulations to attract investment, modernise agriculture, and introduce digital services in government offices to make daily life easier for citizens.

Still, the bigger question remains: can this government turn public hope into lasting change? If the Balen Shah government meets expectations, it could help Nepal move beyond its long cycle of frustration and open the door to more stable progress.

Balendra Shah: From rapper to Prime Minister

A young party with no experience running the country is now in power, and people are expecting quick, visible results. Balendra Shah, better known as “Balen,” is a structural engineer and a familiar name in music and creative circles. He completed his master’s degree in engineering from Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU) in Karnataka.

Balen Shah became Nepal’s 43rd Prime Minister on 27 March 2026. At 35, he is the youngest Prime Minister in Nepal’s recent history, though not the youngest ever. During the monarchy, Bhimsen Thapa became Prime Minister at 32 and served from 1806 to 1837. Dr Tulsi Giri also became Prime Minister at 33 during 1975–77.

Shah is the 18th Prime Minister since Nepal became a Federal Democratic Republic and the 10th since the 2015 Constitution took effect. He is also the first person from the Madheshi community to reach the country’s highest executive office. Before this, he became the Mayor of Kathmandu at the age of 32.

Balen Shah is also well known for his music. His first recorded song, ‘Sadak Balak’, came out in 2013. He soon became popular among young people through rap songs that spoke about politics and social issues. Songs like ‘Ma Nepal Haseko Herna Chahanchu’ (I Want to See Nepal Laugh) were widely discussed during the elections, and ‘Garibi Ko Chameli, Boldine Kohi Chaina’ is still popular.

His songs often address social and political issues, employing poetic and emotional language. He has also released love songs such as ‘Marfako Madira’, ‘Atitakaka Samjhana’, and ‘Man Yo Udyo’. Outside music, he published a poetry collection called ‘Ashra’ on Facebook on 26 April 2024.

Soon after taking the oath as a member of the House of Representatives, he released the song ‘Jai Mahakali’, which included his own rap. He wrote and composed the lyrics, while Fossil/Chronic Bots composed the music. The video also used footage from his election campaign.

Balendra Shah usually prefers to share his views on social media rather than through traditional media. From his time as a mayoral candidate to his election from Jhapa-5 to the House of Representatives, he has often delivered short, clear messages, often in three-minute speeches or posts.

After being named the RSP’s candidate for Prime Minister, Shah gave his first three-minute speech in Janakpurdham, the capital of Madhesh Province. During the campaign, he kept connecting with voters through short and direct conversations and continued using social media to explain his views. This style has helped him stay visible in the media and build a strong connection with younger people.

Balen’s previous performances

Balendra Shah’s political ascent is marked by calculated risk-taking and transformative action. His transition from independent Mayor of Kathmandu to executive head of Nepal was solidified by his bold decision to challenge the Communist Party of Nepal (UML) chairman K P Sharma Oli in Jhapa-5.

In a significant shift, Balen secured 68,348 votes to Oli’s 18,734, winning by nearly 50,000 votes in a constituency Oli had held six times. This victory affirmed his “dozer campaign” approach, which emphasises strict enforcement of urban standards, river restoration, and removal of unauthorised structures to reclaim public spaces.

Beyond infrastructure, his mayoral tenure included social welfare initiatives such as free hospital treatment for the poor and scholarships for community school students. He also promoted transparency by broadcasting executive meetings live.

Balen’s leadership draws on his technical expertise as a structural engineer and his grassroots service, including extensive reconstruction work in 35 districts after the 2015 Gorkha earthquake.

Balendra Shah with RSP chief Rabi Lamichchane during the election campaign

During the Gen-Z movement of September 2025, Shah had declined the offer to be appointed as interim Prime Minister. Instead, he chose to support former Chief Justice Sushila Karki and wait for a proper public mandate through elections. His calm approach, respect for democracy, and work experience in companies like Padma Group have helped build his image as someone who gets things done.

Another reason many people across the country connect with Balen is that he shows respect for Nepal’s many cultures and languages. During his campaign, he spoke with local communities, mentioned important places such as Pathibhara and Khuwalung, and even used regional dialects to connect with people across Nepal.

His decision to wear the Silam Sakma during his oath-taking also carried a strong message. The Silam Sakma is a Limbu cultural symbol linked to protection and blessings, and by wearing it, he showed respect for indigenous traditions and inclusive leadership.

Now that Balen has completed his first month in office, many people are watching to see how he leads. There is hope that, with his practical mindset and careful planning, he can help strengthen the federal system by prioritising decentralisation of power, improving fiscal transfers to provinces and local governments, and fostering better coordination between the central, provincial, and local levels.

PM Balen Shah in the traditional Silam Sakma attire (left), and praying at the Pathibhara temple (right); photo source - 24GhantaNepal

Balen’s cabinet

Nepal’s President Ram Chandra Poudel administered the oath of office and secrecy to Prime Minister Shah at a special ceremony held at the President’s Office, Sheetal Niwas, on March 26.

Prime Minister Shah came to office with a practical agenda rather than a fixed political ideology, with the people expecting him to deliver quick, visible results. Since he lacked a long political background, the grandeur of the swearing-in ceremony gave the moment extra importance.

Along with Prime Minister Shah, a 15-member cabinet was also sworn in, which included five women ministers, and Sita Badi, the Minister for Women, Children, and Senior Citizens, representing one of the most marginalised communities.

Only two ministers have prior government experience. Shishir Khanal, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, had earlier served as Minister of Education, Science, and Technology in the government led by Maoist leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal, popularly known as Prachanda, in which the RSP was a coalition partner.

Shishir Khanal (left), Biraj Bhakta Shrestha (centre) and Sita Badi (right)

Biraj Bhakta Shrestha, now the Minister for Energy, Water Resources, and Irrigation, had also served in Prachanda’s cabinet as the Minister for Youth and Sports.

Seven members of the Council of Ministers are under 40, and the cabinet is smaller than in earlier governments. This represented a major political change in Nepal, both in terms of generation and institutions.

Shah’s appointment of five women to his 15-member cabinet brought women's representation to 33 per cent in the cabinet for the first time, meeting the constitutional requirement, at least in terms of ministerial representation. These women have also been given important portfolios, including law, agriculture, general administration, justice and parliamentary affairs, health and population, and women and children affairs.

Home Minister Sudhan Gurung, who was once a strong street activist during the Gen-Z uprising, has taken a tough stand on accountability. In his first week, he oversaw the arrests of major figures, including former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, Ramesh Lekhak, and former Energy Minister Deepak Khadka.

Gurung also reopened many old corruption cases and announced a zero-tolerance policy, showing that the youth’s demand to end ‘political protection’ is now being treated as state policy. Wider operations have also targeted money laundering, hooliganism, and fraud, including 195 arrests in a single overnight operation in Kathmandu, as Nepal faces pressure from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to be added to its grey list.

Sudhan Gurung takes over as Home Minister of Nepal

As a former mayor of Kathmandu and a well-known face of the Gen-Z movement, Prime Minister Balendra Shah has combined technical decision-making with a style that connects easily with the public. Shah has tried to turn the movement’s ideas into government action by meeting the families of those killed in the September protests, approving a 100-point work plan in the first cabinet meeting, reducing the number of ministries, and starting asset investigations of officials dating back to 1991.

The movement’s shift into formal international diplomacy is evident in the appointment of Shishir Khanal as the Foreign Minister. Khanal had been instrumental in shaping the ideas behind the RSP’s rise during the Gen-Z protests. During  his first international visit, to the Indian Ocean Conference in Mauritius earlier this month, he negotiated a “priority-first” treaty with India’s External Affairs Minister (EAM), S Jaishankar, putting Nepal’s strategic interests first as part of a more independent foreign policy.

Sasmit Pokharel, the Minister for Education, Science and Technology, as well as Youth and Sports affairs, is known as a key thinker and digital activist of the Gen-Z movement. Pokharel has brought the same bold energy into office by banning politically-affiliated teachers’ unions to reduce political influence in education. He also introduced a five-year plan to bring professional sports into school education from the grassroots level.

Law and Justice Minister Sobita Gautam, a founding RSP member and lawyer who helped give legal backing to the September 2025 uprising, has taken the lead on legal reforms. On her first day, Gautam created a high-level task force to reform the  Muluki Criminal Code. The expressed goal is to close loopholes that cause delays in rape and other serious crime cases and to push for faster justice.

Sasmit Pokharel (left), Sobita Gautam with Balen Shah (centre) and Pratibha Rawal (right)

Pratibha Rawal, the Federal Affairs and Land Management Minister, is a former journalist who held leaders accountable through the media during the Gen-Z protests. Rawal has focused on the cooperative fraud crisis. She launched a 100-day plan to return depositors’ money and pushed forward the long-delayed Federal Civil Service Act to break patronage systems, which she sees as a major cause of state weakness.

Health and Population Minister Nisha Mehta, a nurse trained at New Delhi’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), rose through the Gen-Z movement by calling for merit over politics. Mehta has focused on improving the public health system and has promised to restructure the national health insurance program to rebuild public trust.

The Women, Children, and Senior Citizens Minister, Sita Badi, is the first minister ever from the marginalised Badi community. Badi joined the RSP during the Gen-Z movement and became a symbol of social inclusion. Badi has tried to turn the movement’s promises into action through skill development programmes and identity-based justice for historically excluded communities.

Geeta Chaudhary, an environment-focused leader who represented rural and indigenous youth during the protests, has been vocal against extraction-based politics. Chaudhury had been an active campaigner on the issue of human-wildlife conflict, and is now developing plans for community-led conservation in buffer zones around national parks, linking environmental protection with human rights.

The minister in charge of Physical Infrastructure and Transport, Sunil Lamsal, was a close aide to Balendra Shah during his time as mayor and was an important figure behind the Gen-Z movement’s urban planning ideas. Mandated with administrative reforms, Lamsal is targeting transport syndicates and middleman corruption through the One-Stop Service Reform and digital permits, expanding the movement’s digital-first approach nationwide.

Nisha Mehta (left), Geetha Chaudhury (centre) and Sunil Lamsal (right)

Meanwhile, days after the new government took charge, PM Shah had sacked his Minister for Labour, Employment and Social Security, Deepak Kumar Sah, following a recommendation from the RSP chief Rabi Lamichchane, over allegations of misuse of his official position.  

It is thus evident that the Balen government is committed to implementing the ideals raised by the Gen-Z movement, which, if progressing constructively and effectively, could bring radical changes to Nepal's political and socio-economic structures.

In its first month in office, the Balen government has tried to turn that energy into fast reforms and show that it wants to do things differently from the old political system. It has also begun responding to young people’s demands for fairness, justice, and meaningful change through concrete government action.

Proportional representation

The Proportional Representation (PR) system in the 2026 General Election helped turn the energy of the “Gen Z” movement into a concrete representative transformation in the Parliament. After the Election Commission announced the results, the 110 PR seats were divided using the Sainte-Laguë method. This also allowed smaller parties that received more than 3 per cent of the vote to gain national party status.

The RSP, however, has emerged as the biggest gainer, securing 57 seats and changing the overall composition of the House of Representatives. The new Parliament also became more diverse, with 48 women and representatives from Indigenous, Dalit, Madhesi, and Muslim communities.

The Proportional Representation system in practice; graphs courtesy - NepalLaws

The first session of the Federal Parliament showed an important change, from the energy of the September protests to the serious work of running the government. The large number of young and female representatives chosen through the PR system was among the key noticeable changes in the Nepalese political system.

However, the most significant of the transformations is that the PR system was used to fulfil the constitutional requirement of 33 per cent representation for women in the federal legislature.

During this first session, the Balen Shah government introduced its “100-point work plan” as a clear policy agenda. The RSP’s dominance in both the First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) and PR systems positions it to shape the legislative agenda around anti-corruption and governance reforms that helped bring it to power.

A new government, and a new journey

The first month of the Balen Shah government has demonstrated that leading protests and running a country despite conflicting political actions can be reconciled towards a common political mission if there is a will to synergise both objectives.

As Nepal’s first Madheshi Prime Minister to head a single-party majority government, Shah has already significantly changed the political picture. However, he now faces the harder task of meeting public expectations while handling the real pressures of governance and political management.

The Balendra Shah Cabinet, in its first meeting

Balendra Shah, as Prime Minister, has been praised for moving quickly, especially with high-profile arrests and its 100-point plan. At the same time, critics say speed alone is not enough. Some feel these strong moves could be seen as going too far if they are not handled carefully and fairly.

Others also point out that many key RSP leaders lack significant government experience, which could make it harder to manage complex areas such as the economy and foreign policy. There is also a real concern that reforms are moving faster than the system can handle, potentially creating new problems.

The early excitement is already being tested. Events outside Nepal, especially the growing crisis in West Asia, are pushing up fuel prices and worsening inflation. This has highlighted a deeper economic problem: Nepal is spending heavily on petroleum imports, eating up a considerable chunk of its foreign exchange reserves and income from exports.

Nepal’s politics is also changing fast. Political observers feel that the RSP, now in power, could soon be bogged down by the weight of its own promises. Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle has started what he calls a second phase of economic reforms. This includes closing the Revenue Investigation Department and amending 15 major laws to attract foreign investment and rebuild business confidence, which was massively hit by the September 2025 unrest.

At the same time, many people will be watching how long the unity between the RSP leadership and Balen Shah lasts. Right now, the party seems united behind his tough anti-corruption position. However, this could become challenging if resources remain limited and the government struggles to achieve its declared target of 7 per cent economic growth.

To try to get there, the Balen Shah government has announced measures to simplify business rules, invest in transport and renewable energy projects, expand digital tax systems, support start-ups, modernise agriculture, and continue social programs for marginalised groups.

In the end, however, people will judge this government by whether it actually improves lives, not just by what it promises.

Foreign policy is another area where the Balen Shah government is evidently cautious, especially for being a small country in a landlocked neighbourhood dominated by regional hegemons like China and India.

Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal has continued to stress non-alignment and national sovereignty as the government's policy approach. Yet, the Balen Shah government is already under pressure to protect and bring home Nepali workers affected by the conflict and war in West Asia.

At home, the government is not only trying to replace the old political system but also to completely weaken its hold. This, however, could be a risky political mission, many observers feel.

On the other hand, if inflation keeps rising or the government fails to deliver on its economic promises, including the target of raising Nepal’s per capita income to USD 3,000, public support could wane quickly, especially among young voters.

In the coming months, Balen Shah’s biggest test will be whether he can turn big ideas into practical and lasting policies. In the end, the success of the so-called Balen era will depend less on image or symbolism and more on whether it brings real and credible institutional change.

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